Julen Lopetegui and West Ham current Manchester Metropolis with their first problem of 2025 because the reigning Premier League champions look to kickstart a comeback.
Pep Guardiola and his gamers have vastly underperformed over the past couple of months recording simply two wins throughout their final 14 matches in all competitions, leaving them in sixth place within the Premier League and twenty second within the UEFA Champions League.
Only a few of Guardiola’s first-team stars have emerged as main performers both, with Manchester Metropolis desperately needing their gamers to step as much as the plate, take accountability, and raise the group in direction of a second-half comeback this marketing campaign.
There was some hope of that coming to fruition within the final match, as Manchester Metropolis managed to grind out a 0-2 away victory towards Leicester regardless of performing under their lofty requirements, due to targets from Savinho and Erling Haaland both aspect of half-time.
West Ham carried out a lot worse themselves however by the hands of the runaway league leaders, succumbing to a 0-5 house defeat to Arne Slot’s Liverpool on the London Stadium, leaving them in thirteenth place after 19 video games performed.
Forward of Manchester Metropolis and West Ham’s first sport and assembly with each other of the brand new calendar 12 months, right here is every thing you must know forward of the encounter on the Etihad Stadium!
Match Particulars
Manchester Metropolis will welcome West Ham United to the Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon, with kick-off within the reverse Premier League match-up between the 2 sides scheduled for 15:00 (UK).
Match Officers
The Premier League have confirmed that Michael Salisbury will tackle the function of match referee on the Etihad Stadium this weekend, in what shall be simply his second match involving Manchester Metropolis in his top-level officiating profession.
You may take a look at the complete checklist of appointed match officers, !
Staff Information
Pep Guardiola confirmed to the media that regardless of some optimistic updates surrounding two of his sidelined stars, Manchester Metropolis’s damage and health scenario will seemingly stay unchanged from the go to to Leicester Metropolis previous to the flip of the 12 months.
As such, that can depart all of Rodri, Oscar Bobb, Ruben Dias, Matheus Nunes, Ederson, and John Stones all dominated out of this weekend’s tie on the Etihad Stadium, regardless of the return of their Brazilian goalkeeper to first-team coaching this week.
Guardiola revealed on Ederson throughout his pre-match press convention, “Yesterday (Thursday) he educated higher. The primary coaching slightly bit with out disturbances in his leg… I hope so [that he will be back soon].”
As for Ruben Dias, who stays sidelined with a muscular downside, it was additional revealed that the Portuguese centre-back is ‘getting higher’ however stays unavailable for Manchester Metropolis this weekend.
As for West Ham United, they’ve their very own battles to take care of as Michail Antonio, Jarrod Bowen, and Lukasz Fabianski are all sidelined with accidents, with the previous dominated out following a severe automobile crash in December.
Tomas Soucek and Guido Rodriguez might return after they obtained a suspension following an accumulation of yellow playing cards throughout the first portion of Premier League fixtures this season.
Head To Head
Manchester Metropolis and West Ham have met each other on 121 earlier events with the Sky Blues popping out on high and claiming the victory in 64 of these conferences, recording 20 attracts towards the Hammers, and ending up on the shedding aspect 37 instances.
Pep Guardiola and his gamers gained the reverse fixture earlier this season as Erling Haaland recorded one more sensational hat-trick for the membership, and West Ham’s solely objective of the sport courtesy of a Metropolis personal objective.
As for his or her final assembly on the Etihad Stadium, that’s one all Manchester Metropolis followers will bear in mind with the 3-1 win for the hosts approaching the ultimate day of final season’s Premier League marketing campaign to assert a historic fourth consecutive English top-flight title.
The eventual Premier League Participant of the Season in Phil Foden would bag a brace that afternoon, while the Ballon d’Or winner for 2024 would wrap up the three factors to fend off one other problem from Arsenal for the top-flight crown.
Statistics
Manchester Metropolis have gained 14 of their final 15 Premier League house video games towards West Ham (L1), together with the final eight in a row since a 2-1 loss in September 2015.
West Ham are winless of their final 18 Premier League video games towards Manchester Metropolis, since a 2-1 away win in September 2015. In opposition to no aspect have the Hammers had an extended winless run of their league historical past (additionally 18 vs Liverpool between 1983 and 1994).
West Ham have conceded no less than as soon as in every of their final 24 Premier League video games towards Manchester Metropolis – solely towards Sunderland have they’d an extended run with no clear sheet of their league historical past (25 between 1923 and 1968), a run they ended with an 8-0 win with Geoff Hurst scoring six targets.
Manchester Metropolis have gained their first league sport in 17 of the final 18 calendar years, together with every of the final 12 in a row since a 1-0 loss at Sunderland on New 12 months’s Day 2012.
West Ham haven’t misplaced their opening league sport in any of the final seven calendar years (W4 D3), since a 2-0 loss to Manchester United in 2017. That is the primary time they’re going through the reigning champions of their first league sport of the 12 months since 2006, and a 3-1 defeat to Chelsea.
How To Watch
Manchester Metropolis’s assembly with West Ham United this weekend not be out there to observe dwell for these in the UK, with the competition solely out there through radio broadcast, with regional protection courtesy of BBC Radio Manchester.
These in america can watch the sport dwell on Peacock.
You will discover for the matchday one encounter within the UEFA Champions League !
Metropolis Xtra can have full dwell protection out there on our X (previously Twitter), Fb, and Instagram channels all through matchday, with content material additionally supplied on and !